Choosing Your Wedding Jewellery

Your wedding jewellery is very much a personal choice, but you do want it to complement your whole bridal and wedding look and style. You may be buying wedding jewellery for the bride, but also for the bride's mother, the matron of honour and the bridesmaids. Making the wedding jewellery for all of the bridal party similar is a lovely touch, and choosing jewellery that can be worn again and again with other outfits, both every day and special occasion wear, means that your wedding day will often be remembered.

Here are a few tips for choosing your wedding jewellery:

• Don't go overboard and buy one of everything. Think about whether a particular piece of jewellery will detract from your wedding gown and veil, or set it off.
• Think about the necklace style that best suits your wedding dress. Chokers look stylish with strapless dresses, as do three-stranded collars and princess necklaces that sit on the collarbone. Lariats, opera or matinee necklaces made up of single strand, with a drop or ring, look elegant with v-neck dresses as they echo the dress line.
• If you are going to wear fairly large earrings with your wedding dress, you may decide not to wear a necklace at all. Similarly if you have a very ornate dress, you may decide not to wear a necklace or earrings (or choose simple stud earrings instead).
• Large ornate necklaces tend to look best with small, plain earrings (studs or hoops).
• If you choose a wedding jewellery set, then it's best to aim for all pieces to be small to medium sized, or else you will look as if you're in 'fancy dress' and not your wedding dress.
• Choose crystals, beads or pearls that match the season you're getting married in.

More About Wedding Jewellery

View NZ Wedding Guide's wedding jewellery and bridal jewellery information, or return to NZ Wedding Guide's main page.